President Trump said he was prepared to send troops to states if governors failed to quell a growing wave of violent protests as he condemned rioters for acts of “domestic terror.”
“A police precinct has been overrun. Here in the nation’s capitol the Lincoln Memorial and the World War II Memorial have been vandalized,” he said during an evening address in the White House Rose Garden on Monday. “One of our most historic churches was set ablaze, a federal officer in California and an African American enforcement hero was shot and killed.
“These are not acts of peaceful protests. These are acts of domestic terror,” he said.
He said he was prepared to deploy troops to states if governors failed to stem the violence.
“If a city or state refuses to take the actions that are necessary to defend the life and property of their residents,” he said, “then I will deploy the United States military and quickly solve the problem for them.”
Explosions could be heard in the Rose Garden shortly before he took the podium. Police in nearby Lafayette Park had already begun moving protesters away with tear gas before the 7pm curfew.
Trump ended his speech by saying: “Thank you very much and now I’m going to pay my respects to a very, very special place.”
Minutes later he left the White House for the short walk across Lafayette Square to St. John’s Episcopal Church, where rioters had started a blaze in the basement a day earlier. The building is known as the “Church of the Presidents” because every president since James Madison has worshiped there.
His words followed a day of criticism that he was out of sight as the country faced its worst disturbances since the civil rights unrest of the 1960s.
Protests have erupted across more than 120 cities following the death last week of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
The president faced political jeopardy. On Friday, he was led into a White House bunker designed to protect against terrorist attack as demonstrators closed in. On Sunday evening, protesters set fires barely a block from the White House, sending plumes of smoke into the air.
He met the challenge with trademark belligerence on Monday, demanding that governors toughen their response.
“They’re going to run over you,” he said during a conference call. “You’re going to look like a bunch of jerks. You have to dominate.”
The address was announced just 12 minutes before its scheduled start, giving an indication of how the widespread anger wrong-footed the White House.
Senior aides were divided on whether the president should address the nation. His last effort, as the coronavirus pandemic took hold of the country, had to be followed by a string of clarifications.
New White House chief of staff Mark Meadows was one of the voices pushing for an Oval Office address while others urged caution.
